10th March 2015

ICSA beef chairman Edmond Phelan said today that he was disappointed at the progress of the beef roundtable so far. “At the November roundtable there was a commitment to a full review of the QPS scheme by mid-2015 but so far, we have heard nothing. Also, there seems to be no urgency to set up the sub-group to look at bull beef production agreed at the January meeting.”

“I am concerned that there is too much slippage on the commitments given. A lot of the issues that caused so many problems in 2013 haven’t gone away. Many farmers are not happy with the QPS system and the way in which it has been utilised to deprive farmers of a QAS bonus. Farmers must have the option of being paid outside of the grid but still be eligible for the bonus where applicable. This needs to be looked at in the context of the beef roundtable talks,” concluded Mr Phelan.